Credit Suisse bank.
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LONDON – Credit Suisse made a better-than-expected loss in the fourth quarter of 2020, driven by higher litigation provisions.
The Swiss bank reported a net loss of 353 million Swiss francs ($ 392.8 million) on Thursday for the fourth quarter of 2020. This was better than market expectations. According to Refinitiv, analysts had forecast a net loss of CHF 558.5 million for the quarter and a net profit of CHF 2.8 billion for the year. Credit Suisse closed 2020 with a net result of 2.7 billion Swiss francs.
The Swiss bank had told markets in January that it would sink to a higher-than-expected loss in the last quarter of 2020 after setting aside $ 850 million for a legal dispute over real estate debt in the United States. Credit Suisse agreed to a $ 600 million settlement last week.
Thomas Gottstein, Credit Suisse chief executive officer, said in a statement, “Despite a challenging environment for societies and economies in 2020, we saw strong underlying performance in Wealth Management and Investment Banking as we address historical issues.”
Other highlights for the quarter:
- The CET 1 ratio, a measure of bank solvency, was 12.9% compared to 12.7% a year ago.
- Revenues were 5.2 billion Swiss francs from 6.2 billion Swiss francs a year ago.
- Total operating expenses were 5.2 billion Swiss francs, compared to 4.8 billion at the end of 2019.
The bank’s asset management division saw revenues fall 24% year on year in the fourth quarter. Global Investment Banking, on the other hand, reported a 19% year-on-year revenue increase.
Pandemic warning
In January, Credit Suisse also announced that it would buy between 1 billion and 1.5 billion Swiss francs in its own shares from January 12. The bank has now added that it will pay a dividend of 0.2926 Swiss francs per share in relation to its own shares. Results of 2020.
In the future, Credit Suisse sounded cautious on the back of the pandemic. “We would like to warn that the COVID-19 pandemic is not over yet and that despite ongoing fiscal and monetary stimulus, the pace of the recovery remains uncertain,” the lender said in a statement.
The stock price is up about 12% since the beginning of the year.